Chen Li has a lot to do. Zhang Wuwei is dead, but there are still people and horses in Wuwei, the root place where he is stationed, who need to be appeased; Li Bo is in one place, and he needs to be notified; In the Ganliang realm, the envoys guarding everywhere could not be without contact. And Xu Ji faced a lot of trouble, and the 40,000-strong army was in this situation, and it could not be said that it would withdraw; Li Bo's place also has to make a separate treaty; the cumbersome and trivial affairs in the army must be straightened out one by one; In addition, it is necessary to fly to the court and stand by. Both of them had to minimize the chaos that might occur.
Therefore, after Chen Shi returned from Li Bo's flying horse, he immediately wanted to fly to Wuwei again. Both of them were men, although they knew that each other had a heavy responsibility, but they didn't say anything, only when they parted ways, each stretched out a palm and slapped their hands.
A month and a half later, early summer on the grassland came, which was the best day of the year on the grassland. The herdsmen couldn't help but laugh from their hearts when they saw the fat horses, cows, and sheep growing day by day. Weddings on the grassland are often chosen at this time. The more important celebrations in each clan team must invite Li Bo to participate, and although Li Bo is busy, he seems to be very happy to attend. He also rode hundreds of people around Mustang Well. He was a cautious person, and if there was any change in Xu Ji's army, he had to react as soon as possible.
His fourth brother Shi Zhen has been sent by him to the imperial court to observe the audience, of course, the main purpose is to communicate. Although they are nomadic people, they must also understand and bear in the face of an increasingly powerful court. Shi Zhen is a capable person, and judging from the news he sent back, he has negotiated with the imperial court on the matter of tax supply. The second brother Ma Yang was light and agile, and was sent by Li Bo to assist Chen Shi in pacifying Wuwei's miscellaneous affairs. The eldest brother Zhang Jiuchang returned to guard the grass and sand. The little sister Li Yongrong couldn't bear to miss her for five or six days after Chen Shan went to Wuwei, and she also grazed in the nearby area and went to relax. What is even happier is that after Chen Cheng's efforts, the grain and horse trading has been reopened, solving a major problem for grassland herders, and everything seems to have calmed down.
But in his heart, is he also calm?
When the invitation arrived at Li Bo's hand, it was already June 12, and there was nothing else on the invitation, only a few sentences: Since the end of the Sui Dynasty, the world has been in chaos, the Central Plains have been in turmoil, and the people have suffered. The elder brother led a small army, roaming the borders, protecting the people below and pacifying the clan internally. The younger brother admired him greatly, which is beyond words. However, there are many small matters in the army, and there are many miscellaneous matters. It has been nearly two months since I arrived in Ganliang, and I still haven't seen Brother Li, which is often cited as a regret in my life. Recently, the weather has been mild and the grass and trees are moist, and I hope to meet my brother, but I wonder if my brother may take the time to meet? I am here to welcome you and talk about your life. The governor of Ganliang sent envoys to act as General Xu Ji and bowed twice.
After Li Bo read the invitation, he didn't say anything, but went to the grassland alone to watch the sunset all night.
The sunset is brilliant, but it is already the sunset, is it also like his career? He looked at the sun gradually fading at the end of the grassland, and felt a sense of loneliness in his heart. There is only one sun on the grassland, and this is no longer a time when the sun is proud and glorious. He thought of the legendary Hou Yi in his heart, the nine days in the sky were arrogant, the people were suffering, and they could not rest, and he fell for eight days. He Li Bo knew that he was not the one who shot the sun. But in this world, who is shooting the sun, is it the legendary young heroic and talented King Qin?
When the sun sets, the songs of herders sound on the grassland, will they ever think that although the sun will still rise tomorrow, they will be sure that the sun is the sun that has been adjusted today? Li Bo's heart is full of heroic tragedy and desolation.
That night, Li Bo lit several letters with butter candles, and after writing them, he thought about it, but burned half of them. The wild song of the herdsmen came from outside the tent: "Chile River, under the Yin Mountains, the sky covers the dome, shrouded the four fields." The sky is vast and blue, and the wilderness is vast and boundless; the wind blows the grass and low, revealing cattle and sheep. "
Li Bo threw down his pen and thought, and suddenly thought in his mind: What is the life of grazing, is it a kind of eternal wandering and eternal homesickness...
With a "grab" sound, the arrow was shot and hit the bullseye. Xu Ji laughed loudly, he poured a glass of wine, and said with a smile: "Brother Li shoots divinely, he is invincible." "
He feasted with Li Bo in the tent of the Central Army. His Chinese army tent was quite different from Zhang Wuwei, and all the silk embroidery was removed, which seemed extremely simple. He set up a banquet this time, and the preparation was quite grand, not in the food, not in the wine, but he made the people and horses around the Chinese army camp retreat outward for about a mile, and his camp was also on the grassland, and the surroundings were suddenly empty, but it showed that the Chinese army tent was a little lonely. This is his respect for Li Bo, and Li Bo clearly received this respect from him
Li Bo arrived early in the morning, bringing no more than ten attendants. Xu Ji only brought more than ten generals to accompany him. The army was not happy to drink, so they competed in archery and gambling. Whenever Li Bo shot an arrow, he would definitely hit the bullseye, and everyone in the tent couldn't help but burst into laughter.
Xu Cheng's tent was not short of good archers, and he was quite dissatisfied in his heart, knowing that he was destined to shoot Li Bo like this, but people kept coming out to persuade him to drink. Li Bo was arrogant, and he didn't disdain to argue with others about a glass of wine, and he drank it when he reached the cup, so from the morning to the sun setting in the west, those generals who wanted to get Li Bo drunk all showed their faces full of wine, but Li Bo's face remained unchanged, and he still hit one shot and one hit, which was really extraordinary.
The people in the tent were quite happy, not only the entourage brought by Li Bo. His entourage was still quite suspicious at first, feeling that Li Bo was so lonely and risky, and it was not worth it to go to the meeting alone. But looking at Xu Ji's sincere treatment, he gradually began to be happy.
Xu Ji didn't drink much, and Li Bo didn't insist on persuading him. Both of them are well-informed people, and they open their mouths to comment on the general trend of the world, praise and criticize the figures since the end of the Sui Dynasty, and what they see in their hearts, whenever there is harmony, at this time, Xu Ji will drink a full glass of wine, and the guests and hosts get along very happily.
The host and guest were happy, and of course their entourage was even happier. Li Bo was originally a legendary figure, and the people under Xu Ji were fortunate to see his spirit, and it was a blessing in his life. At this time, they thought back that with the help of Chen Shi and Xu Ji, the 40,000 army was spared from a conquest, and they were such a strong opponent, and in the laughter at this time, everyone only felt that they were really at the gate of hell and turned back, and they couldn't help but have a heartfelt obedience to Xu Ji and Chen Shi's actions.
At this time, Li Bo shot an arrow, and smiled and said, "Brother Xu, brother has a sentence that I don't know whether to ask or not." "
Xu Ji smiled and said: "Brother Li has something to say, my brother knows everything and says everything." "
Li Bo smiled and said: "Around the King of Qin, I don't know how many people are as talented as Brother Xu?" "
Xu Ji was stunned, then frowned, Li Bo only thought it was inconvenient for him to answer, and smiled away. But he saw Xu Ji stretching out his hand and counting: "Changsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui..." counted them one by one, and then smiled and said: "Brother Li, it's not that the younger brother is self-humble, and the younger brother is not a blindly humble person, but if you count it like this, it really takes a while." The younger brother has always been quite conceited, but under the King of Qin's tent, such as the brothers, there can be counted, and I am afraid there are thirty or fifty people. "
At this time, it turned to Li Bo and he was stunned, his face was stunned, knowing that Xu Ji's words seemed to be sincere, not like empty words, the hand that was raised in the air couldn't help but stop, thought about it, put down the cup and didn't drink, and thought for a while, before he lifted it up and drank it all, and said with a smile: "That's really a lot of talents." Awesome, awesome! "
In the full tent, I am afraid that only Xu Ji can see the bitterness hidden in Li Bo's smile. He and Li Bo looked at each other, and both felt a kind of heroic sadness. I only heard Li Bo smile and said: "Today, Li Bo realized the helplessness in Zhou Gongjin's heart when he said 'that is, Shengyu, He Shengliang'." "
Xu Ji thought for a moment and said with a smile: "However, it is not a blessing for the people." "
Li Bo's face was slightly stiff, and his eyes seemed to be looking into the distance. Just looking at the peace and joy of the herders on the grassland today, it is far different from the Zhang Panic before the father and son of King Ping Xue Ju of Qin. He sighed softly, filled another glass of wine, and drank it all in one go.
What is the world, is it a big pasture for people to ride and nomadize, live and die? Li Bo shook his head lightly, he knew that the world was not a big ranch. He grew up in the south of the Qilian Mountains, and he still remembers the fine ditches and farmland cultivated by farmers at that time, the kind of agricultural civilization that was carefully cultivated, which was a life and culture that was very different from that of the border horses, and there was also a kind of etiquette and norms that were very different from those of herders. Does that norm provide the happiest ultimate care for life? Li Bo pondered in his heart. He betrayed that culture in the rebellion at the end of the Sui Dynasty, and in the eyes of him, a strong man in life, life is like grazing, a process of his own facing endless desolation and endless torture, but not everyone can be like this. He held the wine glass in his hand and thought so, so everyone was glad that the achievements of the King of Qin were in line with the norms he brought, right? Only he is still obsessed with such permanent grazing, self-grazing, permanent betrayal and permanent homesickness.
Where do people come from and where they go, Li Bo thought of this question, but not everyone is willing to think of this question of emptiness and vagueness. What is he grazing, is he herding himself? Li Bo suddenly sighed in his heart, and that sigh even rippled on his usually calm face. He remembered the days when he drank horses, rode alone, and drank freely. This freedom may not be affordable for everyone.
Xu Ji had an understanding look in his eyes, but he didn't say anything. There is a kind of person who may not be born with the ability to dissolve himself into a certain calm system and feel happy in it.
Xu Ji picked up another glass of wine and said, "Brother Li, please." "
Li Bo also raised his wine and smiled: "Please! He knew that after this glass of wine was gone, it was time to get to the point. This topic should be the topic that urges him, a person who herds cattle and sheep from outside the country, to join a certain social anecdote.
This glass of wine made Xu Ji's cheeks red. Then he took out a piece of silk from his arms, unfolded it gently, and said with a smile: "Brother Li, now that the world is determined, the heroes of the world, except for those who are unwilling to be bound and eventually find a way out, have all fallen into the snare of the King of Qin." The King of Qin greatly admired Brother Li's talents and hoped that Brother Li could also understand the overall situation of the world, enter the court to work together, and seek the welfare of the people of the world. "
He seemed to feel that it was difficult to say these words, but in life, there are some things that must be said and must always be said. There was silence in the tent, and Chen Cheng smiled and said: "The King of Qin has set up several positions for Brother Li: General Tiger Ben, General Gan Liang, and Right Hussar, I don't know which one Brother Li likes?" "
Li Bo didn't speak, took the silk, and gently stroked the handwriting on it, and sure enough, it was the handwriting of the King of Qin. King Shimin of Qin loved calligraphy and wrote well, he gently stroked the words of this generation of talents who had not met for a long time, and after a long time, he did not make a sound, and sighed for a while: "Li Bo's people in the grasslands have always been accustomed to evacuation, and I am afraid that they will not be able to bear such heavy responsibilities." As he spoke, he pressed his palm and grabbed it lightly - the snare in this world is really everywhere, his Li Bo's time is over, and in the end, the dense silk is under his grasp, cracking inch by inch.
Xu Ji's face also showed a hint of nervousness, and he didn't know how Sai Yingcai would react here, but he still had to do his thing. Seeing that Li Bo had decided to refuse, Xu Ji gently poured a pot of seven treasures luminous pot on the right side of his motto, a pot of wine that had not been poured out since the banquet, and Li Bo, and sighed softly: "Brother Li, please enjoy this bowl." "
Li Bo clasped the wine with his fingers, his fingertips were slightly forced, the veins were slightly exposed, and he didn't know why he grabbed the wine so hard. Xu Ji had already persuaded him softly: "Brother Li, you were born into a family, and you know that this is an era when great rocs retract their fans and heroes do not coexist." If Brother Li insists on not accepting it, with Brother Li's talent, the King of Qin and the imperial court cannot rest assured, Brother Li, will you think about it again? "
Li Bo smiled slightly at the corner of his lips: "Don't think about it, I, Li Bo, am just a person from the grasslands, and I am not used to being restrained." Brother Xu, don't mention this. "
Xu Ji sighed softly: "Doesn't Brother Li cherish this rare peaceful situation?" "
Li Bo didn't answer, flicked the cup gently, and asked in a mansheng voice: "Brother Xu, how do you want me to drink this cup of wine?" "
The expression in Xu Ji's eyes deepened: "Brother Li, you can drink as much as you want, this is a glass - poisonous wine." "
The people brought by Li Bo didn't expect that such a sentence would come out after a day of banquet, and only heard Xu Ji say: "The little brother knows the benefit of Brother Li's knife, and he thinks that life and death depend on his brother." But the younger brother has ordered the soldiers under his command that no matter what, even if a thousand men and horses are lost, as long as Brother Li is not ordered by the imperial court today, Brother Li must stay. "
Xu Ji's officers did not expect this to be the case. But since it was a glass of poisoned wine, why did he say it clearly?
Qiao Hua had been drinking happily by his side, and at this time he couldn't help but be anxious, jumped up and said, "None of these people in the imperial court are really trustworthy." Second brother, you go first, we have all the hot-blooded children, you rush out, I will block here, see how they do it!" "
Li Bo had already pressed a palm on Qiao Hua's shoulder, as strong as Qiao Hua, but he couldn't break free. I saw Li Bo pick up the glass of wine and said lightly: "Brother Xu is really magnanimous." "
There was no irony in his words, because Xu Ji knew that Li Bo was within ten steps of him, and the long knife was on his side, and he dared to admit that it was a glass of poisoned wine, which was really magnanimous.
Xu Ji's forehead jumped and said lightly: "No, my little brother is despicable, but for the sake of the imperial court, despicable is only despicable this time." Brother Li, I know that you are kind-hearted, and I also know that you have no intention of causing the people to suffer, the fault is only wrong, this is no longer Brother Li's time. "
Li Bo pursed the corners of his lips and said lightly: "Okay, after this cup, I hope Brother Xu will not have difficulty in bringing me entourage."
Since General Zhang's death that day, I have expected that there may be today's scene. "
Qiao Hua was anxious and said angrily: "Second brother, don't listen to their rhetoric, leave the green mountains there, don't be afraid of not having firewood, let's fight first?" "
Li Bo smiled at him slightly and said, "Fifth brother, what are you burning, burning the bones of those good children on the grass?" Or are they from these soldiers who have won a hundred battles? Fifth brother, listen to me, I drank this glass of wine voluntarily today, no matter how reluctant you are, you must tell the eldest brother, the third brother and the fourth brother, and my little sister. Listen, I drank this glass of wine voluntarily. For it is destined by me. "
Qiao Hua's eyes were red, and he had to say more, and he had heard Li Bo say: "In addition, Xiaohua, although I also thought that you and my little sister were not a good match, in the heart of the second brother, I have always been a little disappointed that I have not been able to help you achieve your wish." "
As he spoke, he quietly picked up the glass of wine with his right hand and said with a smile: "This cup, but I can't drink it with everyone." "
He came out as soon as he said a word, and even the people under Xu Ji's tent felt miserable. Qiao Hua wanted to earn it, but he couldn't break free from his left hand that was pressing on his shoulder. Suddenly I heard someone outside the tent shout: "Brother Li, you can't drink this cup of wine!" "
The voice was fast, but the speaker shot an arrow faster than his voice, only to hear the sound of the air, an arrow had arrived, but Chen Cheng had already arrived outside the tent, seeing the urgency of the situation, he snatched a bow from the soldiers outside the tent, and shot it with the bow.
As soon as the blood came out, the arrow was shooting at Li Bo's right hand, but Li Bo's hand did not shake at all. He smiled and looked at Chen Cheng, who was sweating outside the tent, and whispered in his heart: Ah Cheng, this is also for your ideal time. He still had a lot of words in his heart, but he didn't want to instruct anymore, the little sister had her own little sister's life, and he, the brother at the end of the day, could no longer manage the accounts one by one. The moment Chen Sheng rushed to his case, Li Bo had already poured the wine into his throat and chuckled: "It's so spicy." There are no two days, and if the sun sinks, a new sun will rise tomorrow. You have looked at the sun for so many days, and do you think that what rises every day is the sun that sets on the first day? Sun... Sometimes it will die, isn't it tired when it shines? "
The wine is really poisonous, Qiao Hua had the opportunity to break out of Li Bo's left hand that was gradually losing his strength, only to hear him cry: "Second brother", looked at everyone in the tent with resentful eyes, had no time to take revenge, and heard Li Bo say in his ears: "Fifth brother, carry me to the grassland", he burst into tears, picked up his second brother, roared angrily, rushed out of the tent, grabbed a horse casually, and ran to the reckless prairie.
The glass on the table was overturned, and two drops of wine flowed out, as if to say: This is the course of history. That's it, but there are not many people who are willing to quit so freely like Li Bo.
Chen Shi grabbed Xu Ji's collar and said angrily: "You flew the invitation to recruit me back for this?" "
Xu Ji said quietly: "Yes." Brother Chen, I'm sorry for you. However, the general trend of the world is that it is easy to break if it is rigid.
You don't have to hesitate about whether to avenge Li Bo in the end, I just drank a bowl of poisoned wine. The secret order of the imperial court has been transmitted, the prince was furious, if Li Bo refused to surrender, he would not be able to face the court without killing him, and Zhang Wuwei's death must also be borne by someone, otherwise the King of Qin would be very embarrassed. He asked me to choose one of the two of us to reproach the prince, you are young, so I chose myself. At the beginning, you and I discussed outside the account, didn't we say that we had to take responsibility for this action? The price is not small, but you and I have finally done a good job. I am very willing to work with Brother Chen. I can force Li Bo to kill, although I don't want to, but I feel at ease when I go with him. From today onwards, you will mention this Chinese army tent. I have given orders and am ready to return to Wuwei tomorrow. Brother Chen, don't ruin this peaceful situation that has been exchanged for a lot of blood. "
Brother Chen looked out of the tent, not knowing where Qiao Hua had run with Li Bo in his arms. Suddenly, he found that since he met Li Bo, although the two had different positions everywhere, and even-for-tat in many cases, he still admired him from the bottom of his heart and everything he chose for his life. And his death really left a lot of space in his heart forever.
Li Bo died in the wilderness - as he wished. He even died with a smile on his face, Qiao Hua hugged him, wanting to cry without tears, did he know that his death would bring great grief to the lives of many, many people, even those who had only heard of his name and had never met him, or even a legacy that could not be repaired by you?
There is a shepherd's song in the distance, and that song is eternal wandering and eternal homesickness. The people of Guanzhong initially decided that they would live in peace and no longer leave their hometowns. People are so afraid of wandering and homesickness, but do they know what nomadism means?
——We are actually all the same, our hearts are desolate, our feet are vast, wandering between quicksand and weak waters, and there is no hometown.
The wind spoke a person's name and the words in his heart, but not many people heard it, and most of them indulged in their false stability and false hometown.